Decline and Fall

 

Occasionally I get an email that I think deserves wider distribution; along with my comments.

I got one today titled "The Decline and Fall of The American Empire". I wasn't ready to copy and paste the entire email into my blog- it is rather lengthy- and sine it looked like a blog post I figured I could find it online. 

I actually found several. There is this one, at the Nation. and this one; at Nolan Chart blog. Or this one, from the Guardian, for a foreign perspective.

Then I found it; at the Jewish Press.com.

Apparently a lot of folks are predicting the end of America's World Dominance.

I'm not sure I'm predicting it, but I am worried about it. Especially when Obama now has four more years to make it happen.

There will be an end to the American Empire. Face it; we maybe a benign despot, but America does rule an empire that spans the globe. Not like the Europeans did in past centuries, with puppet leaders and colonies, but with the export of our culture and our life-style. There probably isn't a corner of the hasn't been infested with the latest dreck from Hollywood or had it's ears assaulted with American rap music.

And the American Dollar is even accepted as a medium of exchange in the countries that hate us.

How can we be in decline?

Because empires are always facing threats from the outside. We are no different. Outside threats usually leave us stronger, as we band together to face a common threat. But currently we aren't banding together; we are splitting apart.

It's the internal threat that is ending the American Empire. We are powerless to stop it, as the power to stop the decline is actually working to hasten it.

Yes; I'm talking about Obama.

When our currency becomes more valueless daily, from the administrations policy of printing however much they fell we need to spend this month, we had no way of stopping the slide.

When our military becomes more and more demoralized- as it was under Carter 35 years ago, (John Kerry as Secretary of Defense? Please tell me that is just a trial balloon to make Obama's actual choice seem better by comparison) we lose the fear factor that has kept our enemies- and our allies enemies- at bay for the last 70 years.

When our allies have more to gain from not being friends than they do from being our friends, another step down the road to degradation is taken; another part of the empire edifice crumbles away. Israel; Taiwan; Japan and numerous other countries that have become parts of our Empire will gradually fade away, realizing that some autonomy under a new regime joined willingly is better than no autonomy under the same regime joined unwillingly.

And presiding above it all a mawkishly grinning Obama.

You have heard it before; Elections have consequences. The consequences of the last election maybe fatal.

Only time will tell.